Tag: XDA

The Multi-Window multitasking introduced by Samsung on the Galaxy Note 2 is probably one of the most lusted features in the Android community right now. While Samsung originally introduced the feature on the Note 2, it will be bringing the Multi-Window multitasking to the Galaxy S3 and the original Galaxy Note as well via the Android 4.1.2 update. The Galaxy S2, however, will not be getting the Multi-Window multitasking update probably because of its lower resolution screen and small screen size, which makes the multi-window multitasking kind of redundant.

Even then, some of the developers over at XDA forums have managed to port the Multi-Window feature to the Galaxy S2. The mod will only work on the leaked Android 4.12 XXLSJ firmware for the Galaxy S2.

As clear from the screenshot above, the multi-window mod is not really useful on the Galaxy S2 because of the low resolution screen on the device. Even then, the mod does bring you bragging rights and it might just be useful for some people out there.

If you own a Galaxy S2 and are interested in the Multi Window mod, then head over to this thread on XDA forums and flash the attached ZIP file via CWM.

The HTC Sensation was the Taiwanese handset maker’s best Android handset for quite a few months in 2011. When the Sensation was announced, it had everything to be termed as high-end, including a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 768MB of RAM, an 8MP camera which was also capable of recording 1080p videos and a 4.3-inch S-LCD with qHD (650×960) resolution.

Sadly, with time the HTC Sensation has not really aged well, unlike the Samsung Galaxy S II which is still one of the best Android smartphones to buy out there. For a high-end phone, the camera on the Sensation was a pretty big disappointment. HTC solved this problem by releasing a slightly updated version of the Sensation, the Sensation XE, which comes with a slightly bigger battery, a much-improved camera and a slightly faster processor.

Anyways, thanks to a mod from a XDA member, NODO-GT, original Sensation owners can now enjoy a much improved image quality and video recording from their handset. The HQ Camera for ICS mod will do away with jpeg compression in images, thus letting Sensation owners save images with 0 compression and very less visible noise. Other than this, the mod also allows users to record 1080p videos at 20Mbps, which brings a noticeable improvement in the video recording quality. The developer is also working on adding a 40Mbps bitrate mod for the 1080p and 720p video recording modes. Sensation owners should head over to this thread for more information about the mod.

As a Galaxy Nexus owner, I really hope the developer ports the mod to the GN as well. The 5MP camera on the Nexus can take some decent pictures in daylight conditions, but is nothing short of a disaster in low-light conditions. The video recording – [email protected] – for a high-end handset is nothing short of a disappointment as well. The Galaxy Nexus easily has the power to record videos with higher bitrate, so it is only a matter of time before some developer unlocks that potential.

Earlier today, Google announced the Android 2.3.4 OTA update for the Nexus S. The Android 2.3.4 update brings with it some important bug fixes and video chatting capability to Google Talk over Wi-Fi and on 3G/4G.

The big G said that the OTA will be rolled out to all Nexus S owners in a few weeks’ time. However, for the impatient Nexus S owners, the OTA update is already available for manual download and installation.

Nexus S owners should head over to this thread over at XDA forums to download the appropriate OTA file for their handset.

After downloading the update, Nexus S owners should rename the file to update.zip’ and place it in the SD card of their handset. Then, users need to reboot their handset into recovery mode. To do so, switch off your phone, and simultaneously press the Vol. up button + the power button.

Using the volume keys, select the Recovery’ option. Once you are in the Recovery mode, select the option Apply sdcard update.zip’. Once the file is flashed, reboot your phone. After rebooting, users will be able to enjoy the latest version of Gingerbread on their Nexus S.

The HTC Sensation runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread with the latest version of Sense (v3.0) running on top of it. The Sense UI in its latest version packs a very nifty lock screen with widgets, and new animations.

Now, rmk40 a popular developer over at Desire Z modding community, has ported the Sensation ROM for the T-Mobile G2/Desire Z.

The ROM is a highly experimental one and rmk40 recommends general users to stay away from it.

One of the major problems with the ROM is that most of the UI elements are not rendered properly. The reason behind this is the difference in the resolution of the devices. The Sensation has a qHD (960×640) resolution, while the Z/G2 has a WVGA (800×480) resolution screen.

At the moment, the developer has no intention to work and make this ROM fully-functional on the Z/G2. The Desire HD developers are also on the same boat.

If developers of any of the devices are able to solve this problem, the changes could be easily ported to the other handset. Intersted developers can download the ROM from here.

The HTC EVO 4G was announced last year by Sprint and it still is one of the most popular Android handset in the United States.

The handset launched with Android 2.1 on-board, but received an Android 2.2 FroYo update pretty quickly. HTC recently confirmed that the EVO 4G along with a bunch of other handsets, will be tasting Gingerbread by Q2 or Q3 of this year.

Now, one of the XDA member wdfowty has managed to get his hands on the leaked RUU of the EVO 4G Android 2.3 Gingerbread update. The leaked RUU has already been rooted, zip-aligned and de-odexed by another fellow XDA member.

Users who have flashed this ROM on their EVO 4G are reporting improved responsiveness, and increased free space in the internal storage of the device.

Sadly, the ROM comes with Sense v1.0, which means that the Sense version on the EVO 4G will remain the same even when the final version of Gingerbread comes out.

HTC EVO 4G owners should head over to this thread to know more about the leaked RUU.

It was only a couple of days ago that HTC announced its next generation super phone the HTC Sensation.

The phone packs a dual-core processor, 768MB of RAM and runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread with the latest version of Sense (v3.0) running on top of it.

Yesterday, HTC made it clear via their Twitter account that none of the current generation phones like the Desire HD, Inspire 4G, Thunderbolt will get Sense v3.0. However, they will get some of the features of the latest version of Sense.

Nevertheless, one of the awesome developers over at XDA forums, 911sniper, has already managed to bring Sense v3.0 to the Desire HD. His custom ROM is based on the HTC Sensation RUU, which leaked yesterday on the Internet.

As of now, the ROM is in early stages with most of the stuffs including Camera, and other features of the phone not working. However, I am pretty sure the developer will be able to fix most of the issues within a couple of weeks.

HTC Desire HD should head over to this thread for more information. HTC Inspire 4G, Thunderbolt and EVO 4G owners need to be a bit patient, before the HTC Sensation ROM gets ported for their handset.

The HTC Vision a.k.a the T-Mobile G2 in the United States, and the HTC Desire Z in the rest of the world has got its first Android 2.3 Gingerbread based ROM, with HTC’s beautiful Sense UI on top of it.

TeamVillain have released a new custom ROM for the Vision SenseGinger which is based on Android 2.3 with the Sense UI running on top of it. The ROM is based on the Wildfire S ROM that leaked a few days ago.

As usual, the ROM does have some bugs including the Bluetooth function not working.

Here is the full bugs-list from the official SenseGinger thread at XDA :

* Camcorder hangs when pressing record * Bluetooth does not work * HTC Hub fails to log in * The “card” mail widget does not work * Landscape mode in Sense is bugged (thanks to HTC for this), I would advice against using this too often * Question mark doesn’t work on hardware keyboard

HTC Vision (G2/Desire Z) owners need to make sure that they are using ClockWorkMod 3.0 so that they can flash this ROM on their handset. I expect TeamVillain to squash most of the bugs in this ROM in the upcoming few days.

Now, March has just begun and some folks over at XDA-Developers have found a leaked ROM for the HTC Mozart. The ROM looks like an official one and brings copy and paste functionality along with speed improvements to the handset. The WP7 build included in this ROM is 7355-89.

Mozart owners should keep in mind that flashing this ROM on their handset will wipe it clean from all data. The ROM is a generic one, so all carrier branding will be removed as well. Brave Mozart owners who flashed this ROM on their handset are reporting that they are pretty happy with it.

The Mozart is the first WP7 handset to get copy and paste functionality, unofficially at least! Hopefully, Microsoft will release the NoDo update for all WP7 handsets within the next couple of weeks.

Samsung Galaxy S owners who frequently visit the Galaxy S sub-forum on XDA know that firmware leaks are a pretty common thing. Up until now, we have only had firmware leaks based on Android 2.2 or 2.2.1.

Today, an Android 2.3.2 Gingerbread based firmware for the Galaxy S has leaked on the Internet. Samsung proprietary TouchWIZ UI (v3.0) also runs on top of it. The new firmware (XWJV1) is not an official one and is an early beta firmware.

Galaxy S owners who flashed this firmware on their handset report that the browser is super smooth and super quick. Like in Android 2.2 based firmware, the browser rendering is hardware accelerated. Sadly, the awesome screen-off animation as seen on the Nexus S is not present in this firmware.

The firmware has already been rooted by the awesome developers at XDA. However, one major disappointment with this firmware is that it still uses the RFS file system. The RFS FS is the major culprit behind all the lags and stalling issues which majority of the Galaxy S owners face.

Users should keep in mind that since this is a beta firmware bugs and crashes are to be expected.

It is a known fact that the developers at XDA forums root an Android phone within days and sometimes within hours of it being released to the public. Well, now some developers have set a new benchmark by rooting the HTC Thunderbolt before it has been released to the public!

The developers Jamzelle and TheEndGame7 used a pre-production Thunderbolt to achieve this feat. They even managed to install a custom recovery on the phone ClockworkMod Recovery. Apparently, the bootloader on the phone had S-OFF which made the task a bit easier. Even the system partition of the handset was totally unprotected. However, in all probability the final version of the Thunderbolt will ship with S-ON and the system partition protected.

Below is a video of Root Checker’ checking the root access on the HTC Thunderbolt :

According to the developers, the phone software has multiple exploits via which root access to the system partition can be gained. Hopefully, HTC will leave some of these exploits unpatched so that developers can easily get root access to the phone.

The rooting method has not been made public at the moment. The developers will make the rooting method public once the phone nears its release date.